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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. ground — a position
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. fall — to drop
  6. key — in music
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — a hat
  9. ground — crushed
  10. fall — to drop
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. wound — an injury
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. key — for a lock
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wound — an injury
  18. cap — of ice
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. fall — the season
  24. key — the most important part

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com